C. O. Brocato

Brocato resigned from Texas–Arlington in 1974 to become a scout for the Houston Oilers of the NFL for three seasons before spending 1977 through 1981 with the United States Scouting Combine, an organization that provided scouting data to NFL teams. He returned to the Oilers in 1981 and remained with them until his death in 2015. He is considered by his colleagues to have been one of the greatest scouts in football history and helped the team draft several players who went on to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Brocato invented the three-cone drill, one of the main events at the NFL Scouting Combine, and mentored numerous scouts during his career of over 40 years. He has been considered for induction to the Pro Football Hall of Fame on several occasions, and was a semifinalist for the classes of 2023 and 2024.

Early life and playing career Brocato was born on October 31, 1929, in Shreveport, Louisiana, to Rosa and Cosimo O. Brocato Sr. He had eight siblings – four brothers and four sisters. Brocato was one of the area's leading scorers in 1947 and earned All-City honors; he was team captain as a senior in 1948. He also played baseball at St. John's.

Baylor Brocato began attending Baylor University in 1949 after graduating from St. John's. He saw limited action in his first two years while playing at center and linebacker for the football team. He received more playing time on defense as a junior in 1951 and also served as their placekicker, gaining a reputation as one of the best college football kickers in clutch situations.

Brocato began the season with two missed extra point attempts against Houston. There were suggestions by fans to coach George Sauer that he find another player to attempt extra points and field goals, but Sauer said the problem was the holding of Cotton Davidson and kept Brocato in.

Brocato made four of six extra point tries against Texas Tech and all three to help Baylor tie Texas A&M in a crucial game. Including a 17–14 bowl loss against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, Brocato finished the season having gone 25 for 35 on extra points and one for two on field goals. He also intercepted two passes while playing defense. He missed all but one of his five extra point attempts in a 31–7 win against Washington State and afterward the team decided to use him only when points were needed. Baylor finished the season with a record of 4–4–2 and Brocato graduated in 1953.

Brocato was noted for his kicking style, which resulted in him not seeing any of his kicking attempts.

After Baylor Brocato was selected in the 27th round (317th overall) of the 1953 NFL draft by the Chicago Cardinals and signed his first contract on May 5. In August, the coach, Joe Stydahar, told him that at he was not heavy enough to play professionally, and Brocato left the team, intending to get a master's degree and then enter coaching.

Brocato also played minor league baseball with the Homer Oilers. He also was the head coach of the basketball team, assistant to the track team, and was a teacher. He taught social science and physical education for Haynesville. Brocato helped them reach the district championship in 1956, where they lost to Neville High School 18–0.

After four seasons at Haynesville, Brocato was named head football coach at St. John's High School, his alma mater, in 1958. Among his first actions was to change the team's name from "Blue Flyers" to "Flyers", declaring that, "from now on, we're just plain Flyers!" That year, he led them to what the Shreveport Journal described as their "most successful" season in several years, although they only went 4–6 with a loss to Homer High School in the finale. Brocato used the Winged-T offense, and although the formation was popular, The Guardian-Journal reported that "few ball clubs utilize all of the possibilities of this offense the way [St. John's] do[es]". St. John's was renamed to Jesuit High School in 1960; they compiled a 7–2–1 record that year, which was the first winning record for the school since Brocato's last year playing for them in 1948. Brocato led them to the district title and the Class AA state championship in 1961, where they lost to Neville 32–6. Four years later, he helped build what was described by the Shreveport Journal as the best team in school history up to that point, as Jesuit went 10–2 and won the district championship, before a tie to Morgan City High School knocked them out of the state playoffs. Brocato led them to another state championship in 1966, which they lost 7–0, and was named the district coach of the year. Jesuit finally became state champions under Brocato in 1967 while compiling a 13–0 record, for which he was named the Class AA coach of the year. He led them to a fourth consecutive district championship in 1968, his last season with the school.

Brocato resigned his post in 1969 to accept the position of defensive coordinator for the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks under head coach John Symank, finishing his stint at Jesuit with 19 consecutive wins in district play and an overall record of 75–36–9 over 11 seasons. He resigned following the 1970 season. Brocato later accepted a role as defensive coordinator with the Texas–Arlington Mavericks, following Symank who became their head coach. After Texas–Arlington started the 1972 season with six straight losses, the Mavericks defeated Southwestern Louisiana, 7–0, and Brocato was carried off the field by his players. They won five straight games to finish the season in second place in the conference with a mark of 5–6. Following the 1973 season, he resigned to become a scout for the Houston Oilers, despite being one of the candidates for the vacant head coaching position at Texas–Arlington.

Coaching style Sportswriter Rick Woodson called Brocato one of the most unforgettable characters he had ever met and described his coaching style as follows: The thing I remember most about a Brocato is that he usually wore a broad smile. When Cosmo smiled it was ear to ear. He had a quick laugh and a temper to match. His football players never quite knew if they were in a concentration camp or a resort. C. O. didn't hesitate to rake his players over the coals, but you'd better not say anything about them. They'd make him so mad he couldn't see, but C. O. loved them all. And they loved him.

Tony Papa, one of his assistant coaches at Jesuit, said, "[Brocato] is a man who off the field would do anything in the world for you. On the field, he didn't care if you were the star or an eighth-stringer, he would kick your rear end if you needed it... Off the field you could talk and kid with him, but once you put on that uniform, baby, you had better buckle up and think about what you were doing." He later returned to the Oilers in 1981 and remained with them until his death in 2015. He was with the team for 599 games; worked under 10 head coaches, seven general managers, and two owners; and gained a reputation as one of the greatest scouts in the history of the sport.

Brocato eventually moved up to national coordinator of college scouting with the Oilers/Titans, overseeing players around the country while focusing on the southwest states. He was known for doing extensive research and said that he would not stop until he knew everything there was to know about a player. Brocato added over to his vehicle every year – even when he was in his 70s – to scout players. Alonzo Highsmith credited him for the advancement of his career and that of other southwest scouts, such as Joe Schoen and Chris Ballard, saying, "the more you hung with him, the better scout you were. I was fortunate to spend my first 14 years on the road with C. O., so I learned from him. He's been a big part in my success as a scout, and everything I do I pattern myself after C. O. Brocato. Those are true words. You look at the southwest area scouts and what they've done, and it's all because of C. O. Brocato. The guy had a huge impact on a lot of scouts."

Long-time Oilers/Titans coach Jeff Fisher once said that he drafted a player in the first round whom Brocato gave a sixth-round rating, and said that Brocato's grade was correct. The NFL named the C. O. Brocato Memorial Award in his honor, given to those who have "dedicated a lifetime of service to the scouting community".

Personal life and death Brocato married Lucy Jones in June1953. He had one daughter with her. Brocato died on September 1, 2015, at the age of 85, from cancer. In remembrance of him, at the 2016 NFL Combine, the letters "CO" were painted on the field and at the end of the 40-yard dash an empty chair was kept with a Titans hat and jacket.